


you either love it or i guess you don't

by DetectiveJoan



Category: Fablehaven Series - Brandon Mull
Genre: Asexual Character, Bisexual Character, Dialogue Heavy, Gen, Mild Language, Post-Canon, i finally wrote a fic that technically includes brackendra and it doesnt even include bracken smh, kendra and seth are a bisexual disaster and asexual disaster respectively
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-11
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-14 00:58:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7992727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DetectiveJoan/pseuds/DetectiveJoan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"If we don't stop talking about kissing, I'm going to put pineapple on both of the pizzas," Seth threatens.</p>
            </blockquote>





	you either love it or i guess you don't

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like the inclusion of the Bracken/Kendra relationship requires some sort of warning for age difference considering that, in this fic, Kendra is approximately seventeen, and Bracken is LITERALLY OLDER THAN THE PLANET EARTH

“What are the chances that unicorns are some kind of weird magical race that like to look like humans and date humans but don’t believe in kissing like humans do?” Kendra says, hoisting herself onto the kitchen counter beside two pizzas in various stages of construction. She kicks off her shoes and lets them clatter to the floor.

“ _Ciao bella_ ,” Vanessa says. “I take it your date didn’t go well?”

Kendra starts removing her earrings. “The date went fine,” she said. “All my dates with Bracken are always fine, but at the end he’s always like ‘well, this was fun but I’m off to the fairy-realm now, see ya later.’ Hence the question about unicorns and kissing.”

“Hate to break it to you, but I’m pretty sure unicorns believe in kissing,” Warren says. “Fairies certainly do. Bracken just might require some...encouragement.”

“What better encouragement can I provide than wearing this completely perfect shade of lipstick?” she asks dejectedly, semi-joking, resting her chin in her hands and her elbows on her knees.

“That does look very nice,” Vanessa immediately agrees. 

"Don't be such a girl," Seth interject, pulling a can of soda from the fridge and offering it to his sister.

She accept it with an eye roll. "That's the whole point," she says. "I am a girl, and Bracken is a boy, and he should be able to put those two facts together to mean that I want him to kiss me."

"That doesn't necessarily follow," Vanessa says. She licks a stray drop of pizza sauce off one of her fingers. "Lots of girls and boys are just friends. And sometimes kissing is something that two girls or two boys do with each other."

Seth manages to inhale an impressive amount of the soda he'd been sipping, and then manages to spit it out across an impressive percentage of the counter. He expects a reproachful comment from Kendra, but when he finishes coughing the rest of the carbonation out of his lungs, her eyes are glued to Vanessa and there’s a deep blush blossoming up the sides of her neck.  

Warren picks a pepperoni out of the bag sitting open on the counter, says, "If we're telling first kiss stories, you have to tell it right," and then pops it in his mouth.

"You dated a girl?" Kendra says in a small voice. Seth is probably the only one who notices how tightly her hands are suddenly clenched around her unopened drink.

"Actually, I've dated a few girls," Vanessa says. "My first kiss was with a girl, though, yes. I'd be happy to tell you about it if you'd like."

Kendra takes a pepperoni offered by Warren and stuffs it into her mouth. Her only response to Vanessa is a shrug.

"Ugh, no," Seth says. "I don't want to hear anyone's kissing stories. That's so gross. Why are we even talking about this?" 

Vanessa doesn't look at him. "Kendra?" she prompts.

"Um, sure," Kendra says, meeting her eyes and giving a small smile. "If you want to tell it, I mean."

Seth retreats to find paper towels.

"It's not too much of a story, I'm afraid. I don't think first kiss stories usually are. I was fourteen at the time, and attending an international high school in California. You know, of course, that I was born in Italy, but I started going to school here in America when I was fairly young."

"What was her name?" Kendra asks.

To her surprise, the answer comes from Warren. "Andrea Montes," he says with an overly dramatic sigh. "She was from Brazil, and she had the _dreamiest_ eyes."

Vanessa flips her hair and calmly replies, "Yes, she fucking did."

"Oh, very nice language, honey. Good regard for the children present."

"They're not infants, Warren. Seth’s fifteen, he’ll survive some swearing. And it's not my fault you're insanely jealous of my ex-girlfriends."

"I wouldn't say _insanely_ jealous. I've seen pictures of Andrea that confirm this is a completely rational jealousy," Warren tells Kendra conspiratorially. "She was cute."

Vanessa plucks a handful of pepperonis from the bag and begins placing them on a pizza. "Yeah, for a fourteen-year-old. I think you've got her beat in the present day."

“Well, now you’re just trying to sweet talk me.”

Vanessa laughs, pressing a quick kiss to Warren’s cheek. “You’ll know when I’m trying to sweet talk you, _dolce mio.”_

Kendra looks at Warren. "What about you?" she says.

Seth pushes his way between Vanessa and Warren to pull a drawer open and withdraw a can-opener. "If we don't stop talking about kissing, I'm going to put pineapple on both of the pizzas," he threatens.

Kendra makes a face at him.

“It’s gonna stick like that,” he says.

Vanessa says something in Italian that is very clearly meant to be scolding.

"What about me what?" Warren says. He passes the can of diced pineapples to Seth, apparently unperturbed by his ultimatum.

"What about your first kiss?"

"I was eighteen and her name was Camille Johnson. I took her to prom and we kissed on her doorstep when I took her home.” He shrugs. “It's a slightly less thrilling story than Vanessa's international, bisexual escapade.”

“And less thrilling than your story about Bracken will be, _cara_ ,” Vanessa adds.

Seth doesn’t look away from his task of smothering the pizzas in as much pineapple as he can, but he does snicker.

“Don’t,” Kendra mutters.

“What?” Vanessa says.  

“Bracken won’t be her first kiss,” Seth replies. He says it like he’s telling them the sky is blue.

“If you’re joining the conversation, you don’t get to ruin the pizzas. Take the pineapples off.” Kendra manages to pick off a few pieces before Seth swipes the only pizza within her reach off the counter.

“Nope, too late. It’s already cooking,” he says. The rack bangs as he drops the pizza in the oven and lets the door slam shut. She throws a snatched piece of pineapple at him. “And you’re the one who started this whole conversation, so you have to tell Vanessa and Warren about your first kiss." 

She buries her face in her hands, blushing again. “Not fair." 

“You don’t really have to,” Vanessa says, putting the second pizza in the oven more gently and setting the timer. 

“I am kind of curious, though,” Warren admits.

Seth mimics Warren’s fake, dramatic sigh. “His name was James Odom,” he says, “and he -- ”

“Actually,” Kendra says, voice tight, “my first kiss was with Alyssa.”

There’s a moment of dead silence.

Then: “Holy shit,” Seth breathes, looking shocked but delighted at the revelation. “You’re _bi_?!”

(“Come on, man. Language,” Warren says, fighting an obviously lost battle.)

“I dunno. Maybe.” Kendra makes the comment towards her discarded shoes. 

“But you like girls, right?” he presses.

She shrugs. “I like Bracken.”

“But…” Seth pauses, struggling. “What about James?”

She picks at a loose thread on the hem of her skirt. “What about him.”

“I totally overheard you telling mom that you kissed him and then I teased you about it for like a month. Remember any of that?”

The color in Kendra’s cheeks is going down, “Yeah, well, I didn’t think she’d like that the real story was that I kissed my best friend right after I broke up with him. James was...” She trails off, and shrugs again. “We were only fourteen and I only dated him for like a week and I didn’t even really like him that much and it was awful.”

“Ha!” Seth exclaims. “You admitted that dating is awful.”

“Oh, grow up, Seth. I didn’t say all dating is awful. I said dating James was awful. You can’t say that all dating is awful when you’ve never even tried it.”

Seth snorts. “I’ve never tried hugging a wraith either, but I’m pretty sure it would be terrible and I never ever _ever_ want to do it.”  

“No one’s forcing you to hug wraiths or go on dates,” Vanessa says sternly, “but you’re completely banned from telling the Alyssa story unless Kendra says it’s okay.”

“I don’t really mind,” Kendra says. “He can tell it if he wants.” 

“Or you could just wait for the Bracken story,” Warren says. “That’s probably gonna be way better, anyway.”

At that, Kendra raises her drink towards him as if in toast. “Assuming he ever actually manages to kiss me,” she says.

Warren makes a sound of assent and then there’s another moment of silence. Kendra finally pops the tab on her can of pop and takes a sip just as Vanessa says, “Well, _passerotta_ , you could always kiss him.”

**Author's Note:**

> Vanessa calling everyone by cute Italian pet names. Think about it.


End file.
